A Sandwich A Day: Special K from Koch's Deli in Philadelphia

In this great country of ours, one could eat a different sandwich every day of the year—so that's what we'll do. Here's A Sandwich a Day, our daily look at sandwiches around the country. Got a sandwich we should check out? Let us know.—The Mgmt.

Equal parts non-traditional Philadelphia hoagie shop and non-traditional Jewish deli, Koch's makes some of the best and most unique sandwiches in the city. Get ready to wait a good half an hour for your sandwich, although there's plenty to read on the walls plastered with articles, photos, and letters from customers, or watch the show that includes lots of dirty jokes and free samples of practically everything behind the counter.

The Special K is a wild take on what most shops call a "Jewish Hoagie," an Amoroso roll slathered with Russian dressing and stuffed with layers of sliced-to-order pastrami, turkey, kosher salami, corned beef and Swiss, then packed with gobs of delicious homemade potato salad.

They don't go too crazy with the toppings, so you don't have the mayonnaise overload problem that these types of hoagies can get into. Although it's a little on the sweet side, next time I might opt for some mustard on there too.

The cheesesteaks looked solid here as well, and are cooked behind the counter on a tiny ancient-looking grill/drawer contraption. I've never seen anything like that, anywhere.

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